This week’s festivals (Feb. 5 to 11)

Feb. 9 to 11, Asin Festival

The salt industry in Dasol, Pangasinan province is celebrated in the Asin Festival. Locals participate in a fluvial parade, street dancing, pageant, boat race and food festival.

Feb. 9 to 12, Philippine International, Hot Air Balloon Fiesta

The annual aviation show in Clark, Pampanga province, is in its 21st run this year. The event, which started in 1994 to jumpstart the local economy after the Mt. Pinatubo eruption, aims to educate guests and tourists about the aviation industry.

Feb. 10, Budbod Kabog Festival

A celebration in Catmon, Cebu province, of budbod kabog, a sweet cake that is the town’s most popular delicacy. People give thanks to Señor San Guillermo for the harvest of kabog or millet and demonstrate in various programs the process of making budbod kabog.

Utanon Festival

A dance and music festival in Dalaguete, Cebu province. It features utanon, or vegetables, and high-value crops, the town’s major products.

Feb. 10, 1998, The town of Urdaneta in Pangasinan province became a city by virtue of Republic Act No. 8480. It was named after Father Simon de Urdaneta, the aide of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan.

Feb. 11, 1998, The municipality of Talisay in Negros Occidental province was converted into a city by virtue of Republic Act No. 8489. The sugar industry in the province started in Talisay during the Spanish colonization.

Compiled by Kathleen de Villa, Inquirer Research

Sources: Official Calendar of the Republic, Inquirer Archives, DOT, gov.ph